Top Gear team to have free rein when series reboots

Top Gear team to have free rein when series reboots

JEREMY Clarkson has promised that the ex-Top Gear trio will have free rein to make their new car show how they want to, without editorial pressure from Amazon Prime.

The TV presenter, who was axed from the hit motoring series in March after assaulting a producer, is reuniting with his former co-hosts Richard Hammond and James May after striking a 36-episode, three-year global deal with the internet streaming service that is reported to have earned them £6 million (AUD$12m) each.

Clarkson told fans in his Sun newspaper column that Amazon Prime bosses had been "delightfully clear" about their intentions for the show and said, "Just make the show you wanna make, guys".

Long-serving Top Gear producer Andy Wilman has teamed up with the gang to form a production company called W Chump and Sons, with Clarkson revealing that they are "now looking for an office, a rubber plant, some company cars and a name for our new programme".

The 2016 show will be British-based with no ad breaks (hurrah!) and "seriously well-funded", with Clarkson describing it as "music to his ears" and like "climbing out of a bi-plane and into a spaceship".

One drawback, however, is that it will be aired exclusively to Amazon Prime customers, with an annual subscription costing £79 (AUD$169)per year.

ITV is thought to have bid £10 million (AUD$21m) to secure the trio but their BBC contracts prevented them from signing a deal with the BBC's direct rivals for two years.

Top Gear, meanwhile, has been renewed for another run fronted by Chris Evans, with the rest of the line-up yet to be announced.